Within Seconds: Sylas & Allen

Parry Argument #929473

If Parker worried about Barry's absence, she didn't show it. Cooled down, in his own mind again, he returned to their apartment. He tiptoed across the creaky hardwood floor into their bedroom. He expected to see Parker sitting awake, waiting for him. It didn't happen, though he wasn't surprised. She never fit the social norms. 

"I thought," he said loudly, hitting the light switch, "you would be like every other worried wife in the world, and wait up to see if I came home safely."

Parker cussed at him, even threw a pillow his way. She despised being woken by their unnecessarily bright light. "I sleep better when you're not here, you hound," she said ferociously.

"Maybe I should just start sleeping on the couch. If it makes you happy," he offered blandly.

Parker rubbed her eyes. She opened them, and they landed straight on Barry. His emotionless face said everything. He needed her. Sighing, she grabbed the blankets and lifted them, silently allowing him to enter their bed. 

"When did I start needing permission to get into our bed?" asked Barry, staying put.

"Can you just shut off the light and get over here? I'm cold," she said.

"Maybe you should start wearing pants to bed, then."

"Where's the fun in that for you?"

Barry cracked a smile. His hand found the light switch, swiftly killing the light in the room. He kicked off his shoes, stripped down to his underwear, then wiggled under the covers with her. He melted into her body, her warm embrace. Her frail fingers traced along his spine, using her fingernails at the slightest, which she knew he loved. He was practically shivering with pleasure.

"Am I singing you to sleep again, or do you want to talk, baby?" she whispered in his ear.

"I let it happen again. I trusted someone I shouldn't have."

I'm at the same amount of fault you are," insisted Parker, "I trusted him, too. Instantly. From the minute he walked through that door, I opened up. I let him into our team."

"Jay Garrick," muttered Barry.

"Zoom," completed Parker. 

"Just like I trusted Harrison Wells, or Eobard Thawne... I made the same mistake twice. I thought they wanted to teach me how to use my powers, train me to get faster, but they didn't come here to help me. They came to use me and take everything I love away from me."

"You know what we have to do, now, right?" asked Parker.

"I have to get faster," he said. His voice held nothing except determination. 

"Excuse me?" 

"We. We have to get faster."

"Better."

Barry tightened his grip. "I'm not excluding you from my plan to get faster. Not this time."

"What are you planning, baby?" whispered Parker.

"I'm going to crack the code. I'm going to run faster than anyone has before. And then I'm going to stop Zoom."

Weeks and weeks of sitting in the Cortex together passed. The days molded into one, soon, as they went through the exact same routine everyday. Barry used his speed to read dozens of books, in the time Parker went through a single one. He had told her to highlight important things. She was terrible at annotating. Her book looked like a rainbow of highlighters.

On a certain day, the day it ended, Cisco entered the Cortex. Instantly upon arrival, he disappeared into a vibe. The books piled to his chin dropped to the floor.